Xiaomi Mi Sphere panoramic camera, also known as the Xiaomi 360 camera, or Mijia 360 camera, has had many improvements since it was first released. Here is an updated review of the Xiaomi 360 camera, which has become one of my favorite 360 cameras for its excellent image quality, especially for 360 photos, and its image stabilization. UPDATE: see my new 2018 review video for the Mi Sphere! October 16, 2018 update: Mac stitcher now available!Xiaomi Mi Sphere in-depth review 2018Mac stitcher now available for Mi Sphere

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Xiaomi Mi Sphere is an excellent 360 camera that is tied for has the highest image quality for photos up to around $600 (for photo quality, the other 360 camera would be $699 GoPro Fusion), and among the highest video quality up to around $300 or less. On top of that, its image stabilization works pretty well. It had several drawbacks when it was first launched, but many of those have been addressed, so that it now has only a few remaining weaknesses.

Here is my new review for 2018:

Here is last year’s 360 video review (Please note: the issues I mentioned in the video such as stabilization issues, drifting, waviness, etc. were already fixed via firmware updates):

July 2018 update: in the past year, Xiaomi Mi Sphere has remarkably remained the best 360 camera for photography. Here is a comparison with the Ricoh Theta V:

As of July 2018, the Mi Sphere is still one of the best cameras for 360 photography. It doesn’t get better unless you’re willing to get the GoPro Fusion, which costs over $500 more than the Mi Sphere. For video quality, the Mi Sphere is also a very good choice. The primary issue for video is that there are several 360 cameras that have better stabilization, most notably Insta360 One. The Mi Sphere’s stabilization is still good, but it can’t cope with rapid vibrations such as in mountain bike videos. But for normal use, the Mi Sphere’s stabilization is more than capable as you saw in my review and sample above.

In summary, the Mi Sphere offers excellent photos and very good videos at a competitive price. The biggest disadvantage is that the stabilization is not as good some of the newer 360 cameras. If you’d like to get the Mi Sphere at a discount, check here.

Improvements (November 2017)

From the time I posted this 360 video sample and review, there have been many improvements to the Xiaomi 360 camera: – It now has a simple but effective Windows PC desktop app. This addresses what had been the two most significant complaints against the Mi Sphere – its compatibility and workflow. With the PC app, you can now batch stitch photos and videos at full resolution, with or without stabilization, as long as you have a Windows PC. There is no Mac app yet. – Phone compatibility has also improved. Now on my iPhone 6, I can stitch full resolution videos with stabilization (previously, the maximum resolution on iPhone had been 2304 x 1152). – Photo quality has improved. In particular, straight lines are now completely straight (there had been some slight waviness in straight lines when it was first released). – Video quality has improved. First, the waviness in stabilized 360 videos is now pretty much gone. Second, you can now select whether to apply the stabilization effect, either in the app or in the PC app (by toggling off “gyro calibration”).

In addition to these improvements, there are several new features (see below). With these improvements and features, Xiaomi Mi Sphere reinforces its position as the best all-in-one 360 consumer camera for photos (up to $600) and as one of the best affordable 360 consumer cameras for videos.

WHAT’S IN THE BOX

The Xiaomi is very well made, with a sleek matte black outer finish with hidden LED indicators (like the Theta). The frame is metal, which makes the Xiaomi feel solid but also helps to radiate heat (the metal can get hot during use).

There are three versions of the Mi Sphere, all of which have identical hardware and have the same functions, except as noted for the Madventure (see below): – domestic version: this has Chinese packaging and instructions – international version: this has English packaging and instructions – Madventure 360: this is a new camera with the same hardware as the Mi Sphere, but has an orange (instead of black) body, and comes with the dedicated selfie stick, and a GoPro to 1/4-20 adapter, in addition to the other accessories. The video resolution is also higher – 3840 x 1920, although I’ve been told that this higher resolution will also be coming to the Mi Sphere via firmware update.

*The actual exported video resolution depends on your phone. For phones with a Snapdragon 625 or better processor, you can export at the full resolution. For other phones, the exported resolution will be limited to 2304 x 1156 or in some cases, 1920 x 960. You may want to test it out on your phone first. You can try downloading these SAMPLE FILES (unstitched) (see below under “sharing” for links to the iOS and Android versions).New features

1. Raw+JPEG. Mi Sphere can now shoot in Raw format for maximum image quality and latitude in postprocessing adjustments (especially color temperature). It uses Adobe DNG raw, which means its Raw files will be readable by virtually any video editor with raw editing capability.

The DNG files are double circular fisheye images, each around 45mb. As of November 6, 2017, the images cannot yet be stitched by the smartphone app or PC app. Instead the DNG files must first be adjusted then converted to JPG. A third party software such as Hugin or Yoichi Hirota’s app (see below) can be used to stitch the double circular fisheye file.

To use this mode, go to Settings in the app (upper left corner of the shooting screen), and in photo resolution, choose “6912 x 3456 (Raw).”

Mi Sphere is not the first consumer 360 camera to have DNG raw mode, but it is the first and thus far the only 360 camera to my awareness that can shoot in Raw+JPEG. In other words, if you shoot in Raw, you will also get a JPEG file. Note also that the setting is ‘sticky,’ in other words, when you select Raw (actually, Raw+JPEG), the camera will remember the setting and use it even after the camera is turned off and restarted, whether or not the app is being used.

2. Bracketing (3-shot bracket, 0.5EV or 1EV apart). One new option under photo capture is bracketing. The Mi Sphere can take a 3-shot bracket, either 0.5EV apart, or 1EV apart. This can be useful for HDR.

Bracketing appears as one of the options above the shutter in the shooting screen.

3. Bullet time. This is essentially the same feature with Insta360 ONE, i.e., you can turn the camera around you (e.g., with a selfie stick or monopod) while recording at 120fps with stabilization. The effect is to create a super slow motion video of the camera revolving around you, similar to the bullet dodging scenes of the Matrix. The video will be recorded at 2048 x 512 @ 120fps, which enables you to show a hemispherical view in bullet time, which can be cropped to 16:9, 4:3, or 1:1 using third party software. There is also a screen-recording feature in the app to enable you to reframe the hemispherical view as a 16:9 video.

4. Slow motion. You can shoot video in slow motion. This is an option above the shutter when in video mode.

5. Intervalometer. In addition to a dedicated time lapse mode, Mi Sphere has a true intervalometer, which means it will take a photo at specified intervals. The interval can be from 2 seconds to 5 minutes. This option appears above the shutter in the photo shooting mode. If you need to shoot in short intervals, please turn off the Raw capture mode.

Tip: The intervalometer can work without being connected to the phone. This is useful for taking photos from a drone, for example — it will continue to take photos even after it no longer has a connection to the phone. Here’s how to do it: after you launch the app and connect with the Xiaomi, tap on “intervalometer” above the shutter, select the desired interval, and press the shutter to begin taking photos. Now turn off your phone’s wi-fi. Although the camera won’t have a connection to the phone, it will continue to take photos. To resume the connection, turn on your phone’s Wi-Fi again.

6. GPS location tagging. You can add a geolocation tag to your photos. This is useful for mapping apps such as Street View for example. To use this feature, turn on GPS tagging under the Settings (upper right corner of the shooting screen).

7. Custom live preview. Mi Sphere is one of the few 360 cameras that enables you to customize the live preview. You can change from a fisheye view (straight lines look curved), to rectilinear view (straight lines look straight), to tiny planet view, to equirectangular view (showing the entire panorama). This makes it easier to compose with the Mi Sphere based on your intended final result. To change the setting, go to Settings (upper right corner of the shooting screen). The projection type is one of the options near the bottom.

8. High-bitrate video mode. For maximum video quality, there is a new high-bitrate video mode. You can select this in the Settings under video resolution. Please note that the app cannot view the high-bitrate mode. Instead, the app will only show the normal bitrate. But if you load the high-bitrate file in the PC app, you’ll be able to stitch it as a high-bitrate video.

In addition to these features, there were other features shown to me, which will be rolled out in the next few months.

XIAOMI MI SPHERE TUTORIAL

Here is a video tutorial on how to use the Xiaomi app. This tutorial does not yet include the new features, which appear as options above the shutter (see above).

Shooting without a phone There are three buttons: power, wi-fi and shutter. The power button doubles as a mode switch. a. Photos – Hold down the power button to turn it on. Startup time is quite fast – only a couple of seconds. The high-pitched beeping from the camera helps you to know that the camera is on even in bright sunlight when it is hard to see the LED light. – Tap the power button to switch between photo or video as needed. – Press the shutter button to take a photo or video. In photo mode, there is about a 1- or 2-second delay from the time you press the shutter to the time the photo is taken. This gives you enough time to move your hand away from the camera so that your won’t appear oversized in the 360 photo. – In photo mode, hold down the shutter button until it beeps to use the self-timer mode. The duration of the self-timer can be set using the app. Note: the app lets you choose auto, 3 secs, or 10 secs. It seems that the actual self-timer is around half of the chosen value. – In video mode, hold down the shutter button until it beeps to use the short video mode . In this mode, the camera will take a short video clip and automatically stop recording. The duration of the short video can be 10, 20 or 30 seconds, which you specify in the app.

Shooting with a phone; where to download the apps Shooting with a phone is useful because: 1) you can use the live preview to help judge the exposure and composition; 2) you can use the phone as a remote shutter; and 3) on the phone, you have access to all of the available controls and features.

First, you need to install the app. Here is where to download the app.Here is a link to the iOS appHere is a link to the Android app. If you want to access a newer Android app version, you can check the version on the Mi Store. Installing the Mi Store will require manual authorization. After download, you should see the APK in the app called “My files”. That’s the installation file. Double tap it. It will tell you that it’s blocked. Then tap on settings to authorize unknown apps (you can specify to do it “only for this time”). It will then install for you.

To shoot with the phone: – launch the app. – On your camera, press the WiFi button. It will start blinking, which means it’s ready to pair. – On the main screen of the app, tap on the camera icon at the bottom. – On the next screen, select your camera. – Use your phone’s Wi-Fi settings to connect to the Xiaomi’s Wi-Fi signal, which will start with “MJXJ…” The default password is 12345678. You can change this but if you ever forget, hold down the wi-fi button for 5 seconds until it beeps to reset the Wi-Fi password. – When the Xiaomi is connected, you’ll hear a beep on the Xiaomi. In my experience, the Xiaomi has connected every single time. It has never given me trouble, unlike the Theta or Keymission. Once the phone is connected, go back to the app. You should see the live preview screen. Or on Android, you may have to press the Back button. You’re ready to take a photo or video.

Xiaomi Mijia Mi Sphere Xiaomi 360 camera low light photo

Xiaomi can take photos even in very low light thanks to a shutter speed as slow as 32 seconds.

MI SPHERE WORKFLOW – SHARING PHOTOS AND VIDEOS

The Xiaomi does not stitch photos or videos in-camera (at least not with the release version of the app as of November 6, 2017), but you can see a fully stitched preview on your smartphone app. If you access the files directly from the memory card, they will appear as double circular fisheye files. To stitch the files, you need to use the app for smartphone or PC or Mac:

Photos: When viewing photos from the app, they are downloaded and stitched right away (it takes a few seconds). The stitched photos appear in your phone’s Gallery app with 360 metadata (on iPhone, they are in a hidden directory, until you select the photo and export it, in which case it will appear in the Camera Roll).

The stitched photo can be viewed in several projections: fisheye, rectilinear, equirectangular, or tiny planet. You can then export the custom projection as a separate file.

Xiaomi Mijia Mi Sphere tiny planet sample photo

Videos: You can view videos from the app but they will not be downloaded to your phone until you select Download. Even after downloading, they are not stitched until you select a video and export it. Once the video is downloaded, they will appear in the Local tab of the app’s gallery, where you can see all the photos and videos that have been downloaded to your phone.

From there, you can stitch the video by exporting it. When you export the video, you can select whether to apply stabilization by tapping on the three dots on the bottom right to bring up the options, then toggling the “Gyro Correction” option. Then tap on Export to stitch the video and export it.

A screengrab from a Xiaomi video shows that it has very good detail.

Xiaomi 360 Camera Desktop stitching:

Xiaomi now has a desktop stitching program, currently available only for Windows. They previously said a Mac version is in the works but as of July 2018, that hasn’t happened so the Mac version appears to be very low on their priorities. The desktop app, confusingly called “MijiaCamera” but also called “Mi Sphere Camera,” can stitch both photos and videos, and can batch process multiple files (even a mix of photos and videos). As of November 6, 2017, the stabilization function now works as well as it does in the app, and can be toggled on or off.

The Mi Sphere’s stitching is already fairly good to begin with thanks to the very short distance between its lenses, but when it first launched, there was some doubling, and in addition, some straight lines could appear wavy. Both of these issues have already been addressed in all versions of its software — Android, iOS, and Windows. (I’m using app version 1.8.4.)

Nonetheless, there are slight imperfections at the zenith or sometimes nadir. Now, even these minor issues can be resolved with Yoichi Hirota’s Mi Sphere Converter. Mr. Hirota is the developer of Theta Converter and edit360, both of which are apps for straightening the horizon of a 360 photo. Mi Sphere Converter uses optical flow for seamless stitching.

Here is a sample 360 photo that illustrates the issue with the in-app stitching.

Xiaomi Mijia Mi Sphere stitching comparison

Here are the 360 photo versions:

The stitching is almost perfect. However, if you look at the zenith, you can see there is a bit of warping in the ceiling.

Here is the same photo, stitched in Mi Sphere Converter:

You can see that the Mi Sphere v 1.8.4 stitching has slight warping, whereas the stitching with Mi Sphere Converter is flawless. It also seems that the tone curve on the Mi Sphere Converter is a bit less conservative, thus preserving more of the original data.

Another benefit of the Mi Sphere Converter is that you can adjust or straighten the horizon at the same time while stitching the photo, similar to Theta Converter.

Finally, the Mi Sphere Converter is an affordable and relatively easy-to-use alternative to stitching Raw images from the Mi Sphere (after the Raw shots are converted into JPG).

The downside of the Mi Sphere Converter is that it adds steps to your workflow. It is also somewhat tedious to setup. – You have to create a calibration file for each camera because every camera is unique. – Using Mi Sphere Converter requires the original double fisheye images. However, normally, these are not transferred to the phone. Instead, the Mi Sphere app stitches the photos at the same time they are downloaded.

MI SPHERE IMAGE QUALITY

Xiaomi Mijia Mi Sphere – tiny planet

I compared the Xiaomi to its most direct competitors: – the Insta360 Air for Android, which is the most affordable stabilized 360 camera (requires phone) – the Insta360 Nano for iPhone, the first stabilized 360 camera (requires phone) – 2016 Samsung Gear 360, currently the most affordable 4K 360 camera (requires Samsung S6 or above) – 2017 Samsung Gear 370, which has about the same price as the Xiaomi. – Ricoh Theta S. Not really a direct competitor (except for 360 photos) but it’s a common camera used for comparison. I’ve also added a previous comparison with the Nikon Keymission 360 and Kodak PIXPRO SP360 4K Dual Pro. I also have a detailed comparison with the Insta360 ONE here.

In this group, the Xiaomi 360 camera has the highest image overall image quality, with even more detail than the 30mp original Gear 360. It had the best detail and best dynamic range in these samples. Its colors appear a little flat compared to the 2016 Gear 360, but that can be easily adjusted in post.

The Xiaomi does suffer from purple fringing near the stitch line, but that is relatively easy to correct in postprocessing. Stitching is also not perfect. There is a little bit of doubling at the stitch line.

The Xiaomi’s color and detail is sufficiently high that a cropped non-360 photo can appear about as detailed and rich as a photo from a non-360 camera, allowing it to perform capably even as a non-360 camera:

Here is the 360 version:

Moreover, in addition to its excellent photo quality, the Xiaomi offers full manual control with a shutter speed as slow as 32 seconds, and ISO as low as 50, which makes it possible to use it for long exposures. As of Octoer 2017, the app now allows you to select manual shutter speeds less than 1 second, up to as fast as 1/6400.

Video quality: I was surprised to find that Xiaomi 360 camera also has among the best video quality among 360 cameras up to around $300, despite having a lower nominal resolution than other cameras such as the original Gear 360 and 2017 Gear 360.

This is not a photo. It’s a framegrab from a video (in tiny planet view).

Here is a playlist with comparisons against the Insta360 Air, Insta360 Nano, 2016 Gear 360 and 2017 Gear 360. (I also brought the Theta but the video file was truncated to just one second for some reason. Maybe my Theta was jealous. In any case, trust me the Xiaomi 360 camera’s video is way better than the Theta’s.)

Here are 100% crops:

Insta360 Air

Insta360 Nano

original 2016 Samsung Gear 360

2017 Samsung Gear 360

Xiaomi

You can see that Xiaomi 360 camera has the most detail, as seen in the texture of the fireplace. The Xiaomi 360 camera also appears to have the best dynamic range, as shown by the detail in the backlit door. For these reasons, I concluded the Xiaomi 360 camera has the best video quality.

Here is another playlist I posted previously, comparing the Xiaomi 360 camera to the Nikon Keymission 360 and Kodak SP360 4K Dual Pro:

XIAOMI MIJIA 360 CAMERA SAMPLE PHOTOS AND VIDEOS

Sample photos here:

Sample videos here:

STRENGTHS + Excellent photo quality + Excellent video quality + Excellent photo controls (full manual exposure, shutter priority, ISO priority, ISO as low as 50, shutter speed as slow as 32 seconds). + Excellent auto white balance; natural-looking colors + Adobe DNG Raw + JPEG + bullet time mode + built-in exposure bracketing + intervalometer + GPS mode (when used with the phone app) + Image stabilization (see below). + Exposure settings are sticky. The settings you specify will be retained even after the camera is turned off. This means that you don’t need to keep your smartphone on. + Decent battery life when fully charged. I’ve been able to record as long as 95 minutes nonstop in full resolution. + Resistance to overheating. The Xiaomi 360 camera can be connected to USB while recording. With a USB charger connected, I’ve been able to record for 1 hour 45 minutes nonstop in full resolution. + IP67 water resistance. It’s not water proof, but it will probably survive rain or being splashed by water. + Fast startup and shutdown. It’s ready to shoot in just a few seconds. + Reliable and long distance Wi-Fi connection. I’ve been able to connect to the Xiaomi 360 camera every single time I’ve tried. This is in sharp contrast to the Theta which sometimes connects and sometimes doesn’t, or the Nikon Keymission 360, which has an even more unreliable Wi-Fi connection. Moreover, the Wi-Fi has very long range. According to my friend and tech vlogger Pepe Vazquez, he has been able to connect as far as 50 meters (!).

The most important feature is image stabilization. Besides making the video much more watchable, stabilization allows you to make the camera appear invisible by making it possible to position the Xiaomi 360 camera inline with a slim selfie stick, and hold it at any angle (see around 2:13 of this video). Neither the camera nor the selfie stick will be visible. This invisibility creates the illusion of an invisible cameraman capturing a third person perspective in 360.

WEAKNESSES – Smartphone compatibility. Yes it does work with iOS and Android, but you can only export videos at full resolution with a phone that has a Snapdragon 625 sensor or better. Here is a list of compatible phones. However, if you have a PC, you can use the desktop app to stitch at full resolution. – On some phones, there is a black clover shaped hole in the live preview. This is what is called the ‘black hole’ issue and it affects some Android phones. Here is the fix. – Battery is not removable. – Stabilization is not perfect. — You may find that your video has no stabilization. I found that this happens if you record too soon after turning on the camera. Solution: Instead, wait a few seconds (3 seconds or so) after turning on the camera before you start recording. — Some videos might be stabilized but tilted. It appears that regardless of the camera’s angle, the angle when you start recording will often be designated as ‘up’. For example, if your camera is horizontal, the horizontal position will be designated as ‘up,’ resulting in a stabilized but horizontal video. Solution: Be sure the camera is vertical before you start recording, and keep it vertical for at least a couple of seconds.

As I mentioned in the previous section, there are a few image quality issues: some purple fringing near the stitch line, and there is sometimes a slight difference in color temperature between the two lenses. Note: as of November 2017, the heat wave effect no longer appears to be an issue.

“Invisible” third person view camera made possible by the Xiaomi’s stabilization

CONCLUSION

The Xiaomi Mi Sphere has the best photo quality and has among the best video quality for 360 cameras around $300 or less. Whether it is the best camera for you depends on your priorities: – The Xiaomi 360 camera is also the best camera if your priority is 360 photos, because of its image quality and its excellent photo controls. The only consumer 360 camera that has arguably better photo quality is GoPro Fusion, which has much better dynamic range but costs $500 more and does not have full manual controls. – If you want a 360 camera with excellent photos and videos, then in my opinion, Xiaomi 360 Camera is the best value camera up to around $300, as long as you are willing to put up with its quirks.

The Mi Sphere’s strongest competitors in October 2018 are the Insta360 One X (reviewed here), Samsung Gear 360 2017 (updated review here),and Ricoh Theta V (reviewed here). – Insta360 One X (reviewed here) has one of the best, if not the best, video quality for consumer 360 cameras, and adds super slow motion and many other features. It also has a very easy and powerful smartphone app. However, as of October 16, 2018, the photo quality is not as good as Mi Sphere. – Samsung Gear 360 2017 (updated review here) offers similar video quality to the Mi Sphere and somewhat similar stabilization at a much lower price (around $100 in July 2018), but takes a far longer time to stitch (takes hours to stitch), must be stitched on a phone for stabilization to work well, and works only with certain phones. Its photo quality is good and even has built-in HDR but has few controls, unlike the Mi Sphere, and the Mi Sphere photos are more detailed. – Ricoh Theta V (reviewed here) is easier to use due to its in-camera stitching for photos, built-in HDR, and in-camera stitching option for videos. However, it costs around $150 more than the Mi Sphere, and its photo quality is not as good as the Mi Sphere.

If your priority is to get the best 360 camera for 360 video regardless of price, I think that is currently the Garmin Virb 360 (which I will review as soon as I receive my order), which has many advanced features in addition to having a higher resolution video (4K stitched in-camera, or up to 5.7K stitched with a third party program). Another possibility is Yi 360 VR, which is due to be released soon and will have 5.7K video for $399, but as far as I know, it is not stabilized.

A good review Mic, though I’d respectfully disagree about the winner for still images. I have the Theta S, Xiaomi Mi Sphere and Gear 360 2017 and in tests I’ve found the Theta to give better results than the Xiaomi. Find a location with lots of close together horizontal lines on the floor (the decking in a garden for instance), take a photo with each camera, and then look closely at the results – I’ve found that the lines will be wavy on the Xiaomi, but straight with the Theta. For my purposes (as a backup camera when I don’t have time or space to take a higher quality image with a Canon 5D/ 8-15L lens/Panoramic head combo) I’ll stick with the Theta.

As a short follow-up to my own commment, especially “Mi sphere lacks detail for distant view (blurring; close view seems more focused)”.

This was only true for when my Mi sphere camera continuously shot several tens of photos. When I compared in other situations, only taking several photos for each sites, the image resolusion of Mi sphere were superior to Theta SC as its spec. tells.

Thanks for the review! This cam is quite interesting but do the still images have geolocalized EXIF data? If we have to add manually latitude, longitude and orientation, using it for Street View will be a pain!

Waiting to see your review on the Virb 360 to determine if it will be worth 3x the price of the Mijia Sphere. Hoping Xiaomi updates the software to give full resolution export to iOS or a mac desktop software…..Otherwise, I’ll go Virb 360.

Hi Cord. Yes I will definitely post the Virb 360 review if/when I get it, with a comparison vs Xiaomi. Yes the Virb Edit works with Xiaomi at full resolution on my PC (i5-4590, 8GB, GTX 1050Ti). Best regards, Mic

Thank you for this very detailed comparison. Can you test for us if the panoramic photos produced by the Xiaomi camera can be in any way added to Google Street View? As far as I know in the Google Street View app there are two ways to do that: – link external 360° camera – I presume this does not work. Street View will look to connect to the camera through the WiFi but for now the app works only with 3-4 cameras. – import 360° photos – this looks into the photos stored on the phone and if those have the right metadata, the app will import the image. Can you please test this option and let us know if it works? Do the Xiaomi panoramic photos require post-processing in order to be added to Google Street view? Many thanks!

Hi Cosci. Yes you can post Xiaomi photos to street view using the “import 360 photos” option. Photos that are downloaded to your phone via the app will have the correct metadata (on Android, just copy them from the DCIM/Camera folder, while on iOS, you need to do one more step which is to export the downloaded photos to the Camera Roll).

I just did a test here in South Africa on my Xiaomi Mijia Mi Sphere on a Samsung S7 ( SM-935F) which is the europian version of the S7, which is running on a Exynos 8890 chipset, and it stitched and exported the video clip with no hassles at full resolution using the latest android app. SO I guys one can now add Exynos 8890 processor phones to the list of supported devices as well.

Thanks to your excellent reviews! I am following you with eagle eyes on any developments on this camera and its software.

Any advice on best specs for a memory card to use with the Xiaomi Mi Sphere 360? will any memory card do? any brand? does the memory card need a certain speed? how much memory does 1-2 minute video clip use?

Hi Shayne. It is best to use a memory card with U3 rating. I use Sandisk EVO Select http://amzn.to/2fwbnB3 A one minute video is approximately 300 MB (including both the main video and the preview file).

[…] image stabilization, there has been a steadily growing consensus that the Mi Sphere is the best 360 camera for consumers. But the Insta360 ONE is poised to take that crown away from the Mi Sphere. Simply put, the […]

Hi there, when I convert a full resolution video file from my mijia360 with the pc-app, the new file is about half as big as the original and looks much worse. I checked the resolution witch is the same, but the datastream of the new file is around 20 MBit instead of 40 from the original. Would you recommend a software for converting/stitching without loosing too much quality?

I REceive today the xiaomy mispere and yesterday i read this. that now it shots raw. I need it for photography and this is awesome for me. But my problem is that i have changed the resolution from 6912×2456 to 6912×2456 Raw. And nothing change. I tried to restart the camera. i tried to download the apk from mi. And nothing it didnt work. I also have another problem i put the micro sd (at least i put a 64 gb fast sandisk card) But now i cant take it out. Its stuck in the slot. Thanks a lot for your time. Does anybody had the same problem.

Hi Guillermo. Welcome to 360 Rumors. When you shoot at 6912 x 3456 in raw, it will create two files: DNG and JPEG. The app can only stitch JPG. If you want the DNG you need to get it from the memory card, convert to JPG and stitch it with 3rd party software.

I’m having the same problem as Guillermo, Mic. Only saving the JPG file and not the DNG file on my memory card even if I select Raw. Do you think this is a phone issue? Maybe I need a better phone for it? I’m using a Galaxy S6.

Also can’t get the bracketing work out all. It just says Too many operations, try again later when I select it. Maybe software still needs a bit or work?

Still getting wavy lines if through the phone app but none at all on the PC software so pretty happy with that!

Just like to say downloaded a new firmware today and everything I mentioned that wasn’t working is working now. Seems to take longer to take photos, but might be because is just dark right now will see tomorrow

+/-1EV is way too low for most use cases. Worse, white balance is not locked during bracketing. In other words, HDR is still not possible with this camera.

I have over 100 photographers to equip in my company and I would love to use the Mi Sphere but cannot do that with the current firmware/app. And,I am quite sure that I am not alone. The Mi Sphere developers need to better understand their market. There are missing thousands of sales because of shortcomings that are quite easy to fix.

Here is what they should to do for bracketing : – [+4 -4] EV range – 3 or 5-shots – Lock white balance during bracketing – EV offset in order to shoot asymmetrical bracketing such as: [-3 -1 +1]

Mic, please forward my comments to the developers if you can!

Many thanks for your fantastic web site. You are doing an excellent job.

Hi John. In version 1.8.4 of the app, bracketing appears above the shutter. In video resolution, the one for 2048 x 512 120fps is bullet time. If you have an iphone, pls wait for 1.8.4. best regards, Mic

Congratulations Christian! Yes there is something like freecapture. It’s labeled “record screen.” I’ll create a tutorial for it. But the concept is that you can play a 360 video, switching perspectives between spherical and tiny planet, and you can swipe the screen to change views. It isn’t exactly freecapture but more like Insta360 Studio.

I received the Mi Sphere and the new Yi 360 within an hour of each other a couple of days ago. While I haven’t done much shooting with either, if I had to judge based on their respective apps, the clear winner would be the Yi 360. Much more polished app. The settings actually work unlike many on the Mi Sphere. But the Mi Sphere has been out for so long that one would think many of these issues would be resolved by now. (Like the ten second self-timer that’s more like five.)

I guess it’s true that you get what you pay for. I’m assuming the good photo resolution will make up for the Mi Sphere app’s shortcomings.

Hi Bill. Congratulations on getting both the Mi Sphere and the Yi. The Yi app is definitely more polished. Re Mi Sphere app, please let me know which settings you are encountering problems with other than the self-timer duration.

Hi Bill. On mine, intervalometer is working and self-timer settings sticking. I will do a new tutorial. But you should update your firmware. 1.3.97 is quite a few versions behind. Check here http://ez-team.com/xiaomi.html

regarding the mishpere converter app, how could i measure the pixels from 2 fisheye images ? Finding the distance object from both images isn’t difficult but how can i confirm the pixel on my L image is correspondence to the pixel on the R image ?

Hey Mic, i have a software-issue with my Mijia Sphere: I like to edit a 360-Video with any Software (like Adobe Premiere for example) BEFORE stiching it with the original Stiching App (Windows-PC). The Problem is that after rendering with Premiere the Stiching App won’t recognize the Video. Every specs of the new File are the same like the original file (Name, Resolution, Format, Codec, Bitrate and so on…). I thought mayby its because of the Metadata, but when i erase all metadata from an original File the Stiching App still recognize and transcode it, so it must be something else.

I hope you can help me because i am very satisfied with my two Mijia Spheres, exept from this Issue.

Just got my brand new Xiaomi Sphere cam (and all your reviews, videos and FAQs helped me to make the decission), and tried recording (not best lighting situation) a smal vid and stitch it with the PC app with “gyro calibration”, and at the bottom zenith stitch sometimes a strange artifact appears Any Idea on how to correct this?

Hi Mic, Great website, totally fell in love with your 360 photos and videos. I followed your advise for small budgets and got a Mi Sphere, but I do have some issues with it, that you might be able to help me solve: 1. When I use the app on my iPhone 5, I have no preview, and the saved files on the camera only show up in black (both videos and photos). When I connect the camera to an iPhone 5s, I can see a live preview, as well as a preview image of the photos and videos taken. Why is that? Is there any way I can also see them on my iPhone 5s? The app was both times downloaded today. 2. Both on my iPhone 5 and a friend’s iPhone 5s, I can’t seem to download photos or videos from my camera to local (aka the phone). Every time I click on the download icon (arrow pointing down), it is replaced with a circle arrow, but the status bar underneath the file name (where it says 0.00 MB/5.81 MB) stays gray and nothing happens. Thanks a lot for your help, Mick

Thanks a lot for the info on compatible phones. Seems like I need a new iphone…

I do have a Windows PC and followed your advise to download the desktop app, but the link given in this post seems to have expired. After some research I found two apps that look very similar to each other. One is called “Madventure 360”, the other one “Mi Sphere Camera”. At first glance they look the same, but then I realized two differences: – the “Mi Sphere Camera” app has an additional “Player” tab (which I assume is to watch a stitched video without having to upload it to a special platform) – the “Mi Sphere Camera” app actually doesn’t work… I can’t choose a photo or image I would like to be stitched – no matter whether I choose a file directly, or the folder it is in. In the “Madventure 360” app, this DOES work – but for photos only. Videos stopp being transcoded at around 50%, no matter whether I use a AA or AB video. Do you know what’s the issue here?

Assuming I can get the video transcoding to work, would you agree to say the “Madventure 360” app is the better option?

Also, do you have any clue why I can’t seem to download files from the camera to my local (phone) library in the phone app on an iPhone 5s?

So just to sum it up, is this the best workflow?: 1. Take pics/videos with the camera 2. Transfer pics/videos to my PC via memory card 3. Stitch pics/videos with the “Madventure 360” app 4. Edit pics in Photoshop (does that work for video as well?) 5. Upload pics/videos to a 360 compatible platform like Youtube!, Kuula, Cupix, Roundme or similar to watch it and embed the url to show it on a Website.

Hi Mick! Thanks i’ve now updated the link. The madventure 360 app and mi sphere camera app are both very similar. Just use whichever one works for you.

On the iPhone 5S, it’s possible that it’s already downloaded to the phone. When you view the photo, the default setting is to stitch and download.

Your workflow for PC is right, except that if you edit your photos in photoshop, you may have to reinject 360 metadata. You can do that with Exif Fixer app. A simpler way to edit is via Google Photos, which is nondestructive and preserves 360 metadata.

Hi Mic, Thanks a lot. I guess I’ll just stick to the transfer by memory card, as the direct download to neither the iPhone 5 nor the 5s seems to work. Great headsup on the 360 metadata and the Exif Fixer app. You saved me from a lot of headache I would probably have had, trying to upload a pic after I edited it in Photoshop. Cheers, Mick

Hi Iram! Yes the Mi Sphere is compatible with S6. The S6 was my old phone 🙂 I recommend joining and posting to the Mi Sphere group at facebook.com/groups/mijia360cam. When you say it can’t connect, is it because it says “internet not available”? If that’s the message you get, just ignore it. If it’s some other problem, please post to the Mi Sphere group. Best regards, Mic

Excellent review I have the Theta V, which I like and use. Today I receive my new Mi Sphere. I got the Mi Sphere because it shot in RAW mode, Sadly the Theta V, don’t do RAW.

I use my Theta V with my Samsung S6 with no problem at all, but I can connect the Mi Sphere to my phone. After I keying the password (12345678) my phone display “Internet is not available”. Do you know if this camera is compatible with the Samsung S6 ?

Hi Iram. Congrats on getting Mi Sphere! When it says “internet is not available,” it’s because the phone is connected to the camera. The camera does not connect you to the internet (for example, you cannot browse Facebook or go to google). It’s just information. But it means you are connected to the camera successfully. Just click on the back button to go back to the app, and continue to the app. Please see my tutorial for more info.https://360rumors.com/2018/02/ultimate-xiaomi-mijia-mi-sphere-360-camera-faq-wiki-and-resource-page.html Best regards, Mic

I have purchased the camera back in July, and have already a problem with the finish of my pics. They come half dark on my cell phone – a message stating “preview are not the actual images”… So I can’t see the images properly when shooting; It’s only when I transfer them on my computer that it’s ok; any idea why? Thanks for your support

I have purchased the camera back in July, and have already a problem with the finish of my pics. They come half dark on my cell phone – a message stating “preview are not the actual images”… So I can’t see the images properly when shooting; It’s only when I transfer them on my computer that it’s ok; any idea why? Thanks for your support

Mic, I need your advice. Now I have Insta 360 One, I purchased it for outside virtual tours. But Insta 360 One has not very good photo quality. What is the best camera for photos now: – Still Xiaomi ? – Or new Insta 360 ONE X ? I don`t know what to choose. Insta 360 One X looks very cool, but it focused on video features, as I understood.

hi there! thank you so much for the review – what i’d like to ask you is what selfie stick you’re using or if you’ve got any recommendation for buying one? with all the best regards from austria, stefan

I have tried to stich this on my mac, i downloaded the program and the unstitched video and photos, stitching the video was superfast and produced a preview window, stitching the hemispheres did not work it just produced a small black rectangle in the stitch program with nothing to do with it! There are no instructions at all it seems. I have no idea why it stitched videos but not jpegs, jpegs are only what i am interested in so was disappointed. I want to buy this camera but the mac support is so limited it puts me off and off. Am I doing something wrong Mik?